Friday, July 29, 2016

It has been 47 years since the Charles Manson “Family” wreaked havoc on the Los Angeles area. Over a period of five weeks, the Manson Family committed a series of nine murders, of which included the slaying of the actress Sharon Tate. One of the most interesting aspects of the notorious crime spree was the revelation that Manson did not commit the murders himself, but rather instructed his cult followers to do so. One of those “family” members, who was found guilty of murder, was then 19-year old Leslie Van Houten.

For her role in the crimes Van Houten, the youngest of Manson’s cult following, was sentenced to life in prison. Last week, California Governor Jerry Brown denied Van Houten’s, now 66, request for parole, NPR reports. The denial came despite the fact that a California parole panel recommended that Van Houten be granted parole in April, the recommendation was due to her decades of good behavior in prison. However, Governor Brown was not convinced, stating that, "she remains an unacceptable risk to society if released."

"The shocking nature of the crimes left an indelible mark on society," said Brown. "The motive - to trigger a civilization-ending race war by slaughtering innocent people chosen at random - is equally disturbing."

Van Houten admits that she stabbed Rosemary La Bianca more than a dozen times, according to the article. Yet, she claims that her reason for doing so was because she was "emotionally troubled and under the sway of LSD and Manson's charismatic personality."

Ronald G. Brower is a criminal defense attorney in Southern California. Based out of Orange County, Attorney Brower has represented individuals charged with crimes in state and federal court.

Contact the Law Office of Ronald G. Brower online or by telephone at 714-997-4400.